In a reel to reel, belt driven tape cartridge, a drive roller drives an elastic driving belt which contacts the tape on the reels to drive the tape from reel to reel. A tape path extends between the reels and along one edge of the cartridge across a cutaway portion providing access to the tape by a transducer which is a part of a tape drive which receives the cartridge. The tape path is defined by at least two tape guides and a pair of tape wrap pins, as originally disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,221,348 to Moeller. One tape guide and one wrap pin are positioned on each side of the cutaway portion of the cartridge. Each tape wrap pin is positioned between each reel and the adjacent tape guide to deflect the tape from a straight line path between the tape supply on the reel and the tape guide to increase the frictional coupling between the tape and the tape wrap pin as the amount of tape wound on the reel increases and maintain constant tape tension at the transducer.
These data tape cartridges are used in many environments. In environments such as manufacturing, debris may accumulate in the cartridges. Additionally, some debris can be generated during operation of the cartridge. This debris may affect the ability of the transducer to transfer data to and from the data tape and thereby increase error rates, despite the incorporation of error correction circuitry in the drive. This problem with debris is not exclusive to data tape cartridges.
Floppy disks have long encountered this problem and in recent years, have incorporated media cleaners in their packaging. U.S. Pat. No. 4,803,584 to Doi et al. discloses a cleaning sheet of nonwoven fabric attached to the inside surface of the floppy disk case. Floppy disks having cleaning sheets on the inside surfaces of the case to clean the disk surfaces are common today in many commercially available disks. Additionally, cleaners have also been used in rigid disk cartridges. U.S. Pat. No. 4,734,815 to Naganawa et al. discloses placing cleaning sheets between each side of the disk and the adjacent walls of the cartridge. These are merely a few examples of the use of cleaning sheets incorporated into containers for disk type data storage devices.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,872,510 to Childress Jr. et al. a magnetic tape cleaning and tensioning apparatus is described as being incorporated within a cartridge having a magnetic tape loop. During use, the cartridge is inserted into a fixed frame having a capstan. In the cartridge, a cleaning pad is disposed on one surface of a cleaning and tensioning pad holder which contacts the tape as the tape winds around a roller. The cleaning pad is an integral part of the tensioning apparatus. The tensioning apparatus is required because prior to being tensioned, the tape within the cartridge serpentines around a series of rollers in an untensioned state. Moreover, the device of this patent is used within an endless loop tape cartridge having a small amount of tape. This device is part of an apparatus which is required to tension the tape to permit the tape to perform properly, and must be located proximate the location at which the tape enters in the fixed frame.
Heretofore there has been no known simple yet effective cleaning apparatus located within a reel to reel data tape cartridge to clean the tape by wiping debris from the tape and retaining the debris to prevent the debris from further impairing tape performance.